To vent or not to vent that is the question?

[tungularafishcamp]

A root cellar is moving up to my short list, if it ever stops raining! What say you TBNers, yea or nay to venting it, I have heard good arguments both ways.
Rick

 

[forgeblast]

I have the book "Root Cellering". I think they say it depends on what and how much you are storing. If you plan on anything larger I would vent. you can always close them, once your done...but probably a pita to add a vent once its all made.

 

[Bird]

I have the book "Root Cellering". I think they say it depends on what and how much you are storing. If you plan on anything larger I would vent. you can always close them, once your done...but probably a pita to add a vent once its all made.

Very good answer in my opinion. Of course, I don't know much about root cellars, since it's been 56 years since I lived where my family had them.:laughing: In fact, we had two; one was simply a big hole in the ground, logs laid across it, and covered with dirt; no vent other than what could get by the door. We stored potatoes on hardware cloth and it was also our storm cellar. the other one had a peaked roof, metal roofing the same as the house, shelving to store all the canned goods every summer.

 

[Western]

I have the book "Root Cellering". I think they say it depends on what and how much you are storing. If you plan on anything larger I would vent. you can always close them, once your done...but probably a pita to add a vent once its all made.

X's 3
Easier now than later and you have the option. A vent may be good if you get moisture problems.

Very good answer in my opinion. Of course, I don't know much about root cellars, since it's been 56 years since I lived where my family had them.:laughing: In fact, we had two; one was simply a big hole in the ground, logs laid across it, and covered with dirt;

:laughing: Bird, I love your responses, makes me want to ask you what it was like on the "Oregon" trail
In the old day's root cellars where almost a necessity, and I doubt they where sealed up like a safe. Also they probably didn't have the containers "canning" things we have had in the 1900's. They seemed to do OK with dried meats and veggies.

That quirk at Bird was a friendly "jest". There are few people with his amount of experience

 

[TedLaRue]

My grandparents lived in a stone house in Arthurdale, WV, built in 1937 by the WPA (Works Progress Administration) under the guidance of Eleanor Roosevelt as part of the New Deal. It had an above ground root cellar which was a low-ceiling room with a thick insulated door, all covered by a thick layer of dirt. They had grapes growing out of the sides of it.

It had a vent, and it was always about the same temperature which felt cool in the summer, and warm in the winter. It did a wonderful job of storing their potatoes and canned goods.

I built a cellar underground with insulation, and it went a year before I put a vent in it. At times it was dripping water off the ceiling and walls, so my advice is to put in the vent. I think part of the problem is that during warm weather, warm moist air enters when you open the door, and then condenses on the cool walls and ceiling. The vent would alleviate that.

Your climate may not require one, but as forgeblast said, "you can always close them", and it's not that expensive/difficult to put one in.

 

[tungularafishcamp]

Thanks for the advice guys and the bits of history too:thumbsup:
I never thought about making one I could close off duh, that would be perfect. We have a very damp climate and I would want the venting 9 months of the year. My problem was the coldest 3 months where it can let in too much cold and even freeze stuff.

 

[paulwestski]

If I recall correctly you want to vents one in and one out. One High and one low
You definitely want dampers on them to control the flow during different time of the seasons.

 

[forgeblast]

If I recall correctly you want to vents one in and one out. One High and one low
You definitely want dampers on them to control the flow during different time of the seasons.

Yes!! that is correct. That way you have fresh air coming in and the old air leaving.

A double entry door was also recommended actually two doors. Depending on the install, it looked like a lot of people had bilco doors,and then a door at the bottom.
Also how you line the bottom of the cellar will determine the moisture too, gravel=more moisture, where concrete would mean less. Some people in the book did a split type cellar so that certain good could be kept on one side.
Amazon.com: Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables (0037038007039): Mike Bubel, Nancy Bubel: Books
is the book I was talking about.
I would/will be making on into our hill side eventually.

 

[Bird]

There's another thing about vents in the south that folks in Alaska don't have to worry about. The place I mentioned with two cellars was the place Dad bought at Healdton, OK. But before he bought that place, we rented a place at Healdton when we first moved out there. It only had one cellar, dirt covered, and had a single vertical vent pipe. Now of course cellars in those days had no lights so when you went down there, you sometimes carried a flashlight or a kerosene lantern. But occasionally, there was enough light if you just left the door open.

So one day, Mother went down there to get some kind of canned goods, and she came running back up the steps, screaming for me. She said there was a big snake down there. I was 10 years old and had just gotten my first .22 rifle. It so happened that my best friend was there that day, so I let him have my Dad's .22 and had him standing on top of the cellar to shoot the snake if it came up through the vent pipe, and I went down in the cellar with my .22 and a flashlight to look for the snake. Sure enough, the snake went out through that vent and my buddy got to shoot it.

Mother used to tell the story about her telling friends about that incident and one of her friends said, "Why would you let that little boy go down there with a snake?" and she said, "Because I was afraid of them and he wasn't."

 

[Don87]

For some interesting reading

Root Cellars

Return of the Root Cellars